Demolition Love
by Jules9
Summary: Angelus may be back, but he just can't seem to forget Buffy...
1. Quote

"Thank God the voices screaming in my head  
Would sooner wish instead  
Than face the bitterness of loss  
I can take it now  
I know myself in demolition love"  
  
Jann Arden, 'Demolition Love' 


	2. Prologue

PROLOGUE  
  
"The boy that you loved  
Is the monster you fear"  
-Marilyn Manson, "Man That You Fear"  
  
Buffy Summers struggled through her window and tiredly climbed into bed, still fully dressed. It was past midnight and she had to go to school the next day. Being a vampire slayer was a tough job. Spending every night fighting hell's demons and putting all your friends and loved ones in danger was not something to be enjoyed. Worst of all was being the chosen one at such a young age.   
  
Buffy was fifteen, almost sixteen, when she started her career. Vampires started showing up around her hometown of Los Angeles and terrorizing its citizens or anyone else they could find that would make a good meal. She had seen enough horror films to know what to do and one day, out of self defense, staked her first vamp using a piece of the wooden baseball bat he came after her with. That day on, she had taken it upon herself to slay these demons and save the lives of their would-be prey.   
  
Things didn't go unnoticed by her mother, though, and Buffy's 'extracurricular activities' soon ended up getting her expelled from school. Mom wasn't at all thrilled about having to uproot herself and her daughter, and the two moved to the small town of Sunnydale, California, to try and start over as best they could. Sunnydale High was the only decent school that would take Buffy, and Joyce, her mom, opened up her own art gallery downtown. Again, things seemed to be going well.   
  
The only problem was that Buffy wasn't able to escape the things that made her leave LA. Vampires. It turned out they weren't only in LA. They were everywhere, and Sunnydale was a vampire hot spot. Located on top of a gateway between the earth and the hell below it, strange things always seemed to be happening there. This was something Buffy found out on her first day of school when a very dead guy was found, drained of all his blood, stuffed in one of the lockers in the girls' locker room.   
  
Buffy soon learned about all of this and was contacted by Mr. Rupert Giles, an ex-museum curator in England who came to Sunnydale as her watcher to prepare her to face these evil demons. At first, Buffy was very adamant about not going back to slaying and trying to live a normal, teenage life. However, she found that was impossible and was now officially 'Buffy, The Vampire Slayer.'   
  
Buffy's new friends, Alexander "Xander" Harris and Willow Rosenberg, learned of her unusual job when one their friends was kidnapped by vampires and although he did not survive, became the 'Slayerettes.' Besides their help and Giles', Buffy also had Angel's. He was a vampire but with a soul and they later started dating. Things went as well as could be expected until one night, on her seventeenth birthday, they made love and Angel was turned back into a demon.   
  
The whole explanation for this was simple. Over eighty years before, Angel had fed on a Gypsy girl in Europe. The girl wasn't that bright, but she was beautiful and sorely missed by all of her clan. The elders decided on the perfect punishment for the then Angelus and used their magic to restore his soul. Angelus, who had now changed his name to just Angel, left Europe and moved to America, shunning all other vampires and living in seclusion. Until Buffy.   
  
He began dropping subtle hints to her about things that were destined to happen and the pair became close friends, then lovers. The latter part was what did them in. Any moment of complete happiness, when he wasn't tormented by the guilt his soul constantly reminded him of, would turn him back into a demon. The first and only time they ever made love, Angel reverted back to his former self and began to torture Buffy, her mother, and friends whatever way he could. She had made him feel like a human being and that was not something he was happy about.   
  
He wanted revenge, but he also wanted her by his side, and he would not give up until that was accomplished. He would turn her into a vampire and together they would rule along with his 'children,' William the Bloody or "Spike" and Drusilla. That was his goal, and no one would stand in his way until it was real. Or she killed him.  
  
But she couldn't do that, and he knew it. They were destined to fight seemingly endless battles until she was certain her Angel was gone. Only then would she be able to kill the thing that had taken the place of her first love.  
  
Yawning, Buffy pushed those thoughts into the back of her mind and fell into a deep sleep... 


	3. Chapter 1

*The song used is Sarah McLachlan's "Do What You Have To Do" from the album Surfacing.*   
  
CHAPTER 1  
  
"I'm gettin' in  
Under your skin"  
-Luscious Jackson, "Under Your Skin"  
  
"She got away! Why didn't you kill her!?"   
  
Spike was growing increasingly annoyed at Angelus' cocky behavior now that he was back, and his actions towards the slayer didn't help at all either. He seemed to enjoy taunting and toying with her until he was certain she would break, but she never did. She stayed strong enough to tackle every situation Angelus threw at her, and he and Drusilla were left to pay the consequences.   
  
"Don't worry about it." Angelus waved him off. "We'll get her next time." He didn't think there was anything to be worried about. Buffy was a worthy adversary and well worth the wait.   
  
"That's what you always say," he murmured, turning around in his chair.   
  
After an unfortunate run-in with the slayer many months ago, he was seriously injured and totally dependent on a wheelchair to get around. Angelus was always teasing him about it, but what he and Drusilla didn't realize was that Spike really didn't need it. He had now totally healed, and the chair was of no use anymore. He still didn't tell his companions, though. He wasn't ready yet, and what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.   
  
"Oh, Spike, don't fret," Drusilla cooed in her light British accent, kneeling down beside him. "Angel will fix everything."   
  
"I just worry about you, pet," he told his paramour in a similar accent. "That pesky slayer needs to be stopped. She's ruining everything."   
  
"Don't worry about Buffy," Angelus assured him nonchalantly. "I'll take care of her. You're better off thinking of yourself. You're still not healed completely. Why don't you stay here tomorrow night?"   
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Spike asked angrily, spinning around to face his sire.   
  
"Nothing." Angelus moved around the room slowly, enjoying the fact that he really was in charge. "It's just that well, Spike, you're still not all that healthy, and I wouldn't want to risk your health outside. It's been great having you with us, man, but maybe you should get some rest."   
  
"I'm touched. Really," Spike said, trying his best not to want to kill what a human might call his 'father.' "But it's the slayer you should be worrying about. Not me."   
  
"I'll handle her. Trust me." Angelus grinned, and Drusilla had no reason to doubt him. Spike, on the other hand, wasn't so sure...   
  
***  
  
Outside the Summers home, Angelus strolled across the front of the house until he reached the tall maple tree that stood beside it. With one leap, he landed on one of its branches and sat down, settling against the rough trunk.  
  
What ravages of spirit conjured this tempestuous rage   
Created you a monster broken by the rules of love   
And fate has led you through it, You do what you have to do   
And fate has led you through it, You do what you have to do   
  
And I have the sense to recognize   
That I don't know how to let you go   
  
Through one of the windows, he could see Buffy as she stirred and rolled over in her sleep. He would often come in the few hours when he wasn't feeding, just to check up on her. He wasn't able to go in due to some kind of spell she had put on the house, but he would still sit and watch her. Somehow, she had managed to get under his skin when he was still Angel, and the memories just wouldn't go away.   
  
Every moment marked with apparitions of your soul   
I'm ever swiftly moving, trying to escape this desire   
The yearning to be near you, I do what I have to do   
The yearning to be near you, I do what I have to do   
  
But I have the sense to recognize   
That I don't know how to let you go   
I don't know how to let you go   
  
She had put up a good fight tonight, sticking with it 'til the end. Tough and smart. That was what he liked about her. God, was she beautiful when she was mad. He wanted her more and more every day. Soon, she would be his...   
  
A glowing ember, burning hot and burning slow   
Deep within I'm shaken by the violence of existing for only you   
I know I can't be with you, I do what I have to do   
I know I can't be with you, I do what I have to do   
  
And I have the sense to recognize   
That I don't know how to let you go   
I don't know how to let you go... 


	4. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2  
  
"What we learned here is love tastes bitter when it's gone  
Past yourself, forget the light, things look dirty when it's on"  
-Matchbox 20, "Shame"  
  
When Buffy arrived at school the next morning, she headed straight for the library as she did every day. It didn't matter if she was late or not, it was still the first place she went. Giles wanted a detailed report every morning before classes of all vampire or paranormal activity, and she was happy to give it to him. It was better than keeping it all to herself, anyway.  
  
"Hey, Giles," she called, swinging through the double doors, confident that no one else would be in there that early.   
  
"Good morning, Buffy," he replied in his usually polite way, sorting through a large stack of books at a table in the middle of the room. "Anything unusual happen last night?"   
  
These morning reports were the highlight of his day. He loved hearing about all the town's demonic activity. What else was there in a place like Sunnydale?   
  
"Nope. Not really," she said, dropping into a chair beside him. "Angel and Drusilla showed up with Spike, but they were no problem."   
  
She chuckled to herself, shaking her head. Drusilla was a coward, and with Spike still in his chair Angel had to look out for all three of them. All things considered, that certainly made her job a heck of a lot easier.   
  
"You're sure?" Giles hoped fighting Angel or something that looked like him wouldn't mess up Buffy's concentration, but she was still in tip-top slayer shape.   
  
"Yeah." Buffy nodded to show him she was okay, but her mind was somewhere else entirely...  
  
***  
  
"So how'd things go last night?" Willow asked curiously, sitting down in the desk beside her friend.  
  
Willow and Buffy were in the same homeroom together, due to their last names. Willow was an "R" (Rosenburg), and Buffy was an "S" (Summers). Xander's last name was Harris so he was in a room a few doors down the hall.  
  
"As well as can be expected when you're fighting the man you love," Buffy responded glumly, tracing over her notebook absently with the end of her pen.  
  
"Buffy, it isn't Angel," Willow tried to tell her sympathetically.  
  
"I know. 'It's the thing that killed him.' Giles has given me that speech a hundred times already, but when I look at him, that's all I see."  
  
Willow sighed and put her hand on Buffy's shoulder. It was difficult for Buffy to believe that Angel wasn't himself anymore. He was Angelus, terrorizing the city along with his army of vampires, and intent on killing her or driving her insane, whichever one came first...  
  
***  
  
Back at vamp headquarters, everyone was asleep. Day wasn't really that popular for them, and they usually spent the time catching up on their sleep or planning their next attack. While Angelus and Drusilla took the first option, Spike chose the latter, pacing around the open meeting room. His ability to walk was still his secret and would be until he chose to make it known.  
One way or another, the slayer had to go. And if Angelus wasn't up to it, he certainly was... 


	5. Chapter 3

*The songs used is "Dolphin," taken from Poe's debut album, Hello.*   
  
CHAPTER 3  
  
"This thing beneath my ribs  
Will beat me to the ground"  
-Jann Arden, "Gasoline"  
  
"Look, I know what you guys are trying to do, but it isn't going to work. I don't really feel like partying tonight," Buffy said, sitting down at one of the Bronze's empty tables.  
  
"Sure you do!" Xander wasn't going to take "no" for an answer. Buffy was down in the dumps and it was his and Willow's job as her best friends to make sure she got Angel off her mind.  
  
"Xander, maybe she's right-" Willow began, but he wouldn't hear of it.  
  
"Come on, guys. We're at the Bronze. We're Bronzin'. The band is hot and we're gonna have a good time."  
  
The band, led by a good-looking young woman named Poe, geared up to start another song and he sat down at the table next to the two girls. Moments later, the song began, a funky, alternative kind of tune entitled "Dolphin."  
  
There's a broken beam inside  
Of the big, big bridge  
I guess that whole thing is caving in  
Maybe it is time I learned how to swim  
I'll be a dolphin, I'll be a dolphin  
  
Sometimes I think I'm breaking down  
And other times I think that I'm fine  
But something got into my engine  
It slowed me down  
Now I gotta turn this whole thing around  
I gotta be a dolphin, I gotta be a dolphin  
  
Sometimes I think that you're crazy and sick  
And other times I think you're so fine  
But I know I'm in danger 'cause you feel like a stranger  
And I know that something's going to give  
  
Buffy sat, memorized by the woman's words. Did everything have to remind her of Angel? She wasn't sure she could take much more.   
  
When I dive into that ocean  
God, I hope I don't sink like stone, no  
I'm gonna move like a dolphin  
There may be a lot I don't know about you  
But I know if I don't swim I'm already drowning  
  
'Cause a broken bridge is a broken bridge  
So I swim to you now  
Here I come, Here I come...  
  
"Excuse me," Buffy said abruptly as the band was playing the ending notes on their instruments. Grabbing her purse, she quickly got up and headed out the door.  
  
"Xander!" Willow scolded him. "Look what you did!"  
  
Taking a deep breath, Xander shook his head. So maybe coming to the Bronze wasn't such a good idea after all...  
  
"Come on!" he urged her, and together they chased after their friend...  
  
"Well, well. Look what we have here." Spike clicked his tongue and two burly vamps grabbed Xander and Willow as they tried to leave the club. "Things seem to be falling right into my lap," he told them as their captors led them into a deserted alley behind the building.  
  
He held Buffy by the throat, obviously he had gotten her too as she was leaving, and two others backed him as they watched over the slayer and her friends. Buffy hadn't even thought that his 'injured man' ploy was an act, and he was able to fool her just like Angelus and Dru. His plan was going so well!  
  
That was, until...  
  
"Let her go."  
  
Xander let out a loud gulp when he heard that voice. He knew its owner very well. Too well.  
  
"Angel," Spike greeted him, smiling as his vampiric face now became evident. This would certainly be a treat... 


	6. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4  
  
"I came to suck you up, I came to shut you down  
I came around to tear your little world apart"  
-Garbage, "Vow"  
  
"Angel, so nice to see you," Spike said, grinning. "You're just in time to watch the show."  
  
"Spike," Drusilla sighed breathlessly, appearing from behind Angelus. They had obviously been out hunting together. "You're back."  
  
"Yeah, baby. All better," he assured her, keeping his grip on the slayer's throat. "I brought some presents for you, too."  
  
"Ooh!"  
  
Drusilla giggled giddily and stepped in front of Xander and Willow. They had given up trying to escape - Their captors were much too strong - and simply stood there, watching the scene in front of them unfold. However, both were equally frightened when she pulled a golden dagger out of her boot.  
  
"Such pretty hair. It looks like fire," Dru murmured to herself absently, sliding the blade under a lock of Willow's auburn tresses and wrapping the hair around it. "Can I have some?"  
  
Willow gasped audibly as Drusilla sliced a short lock out of her long hair, and Buffy struggled to break free. Her attempts were futile as Spike's hand gripped tighter around her throat and she struggled for breath.  
  
A low growl escaped Angelus' throat. "Let her go," he repeated, this time more seriously. He obviously wasn't enjoying Spike's so-called 'presents.' Or at least one of them.  
  
"Or what? You'll kill me?" Spike asked him, laughing. "No, wait. You already did."  
  
"I'll do it again if I have to," Angelus replied coolly, his face deadpan.  
  
"No you won't," his protégé told him. "I've got your girlfriend, and you wouldn't want anything unfortunate to happen to her, would you, Angel? That's the problem with you. You care too much about her. Why couldn't you just kill her!?"  
  
Angelus was silent. He wasn't aware his feelings had been so obvious. Spike must have been planning this for a long time.  
  
"That's what I thought. Oh well, looks like I'll have to do it. They do say three is the luckiest number."  
  
Buffy took a deep breath and shut her eyes, oblivious to what was going on around her. Spike was obviously taunting Angel, and she didn't believe a word of it. Angel just wanted to kill her himself. That was probably it. All she knew was she was trapped and had given up hope.  
  
Angelus had finally gotten his wish. She was tired of fighting. Everything she had accomplished seemed to only lead up to something more difficult. She just couldn't take it anymore.  
  
She knew it was every slayer's fate to die young. She just wished that she'd had a little more time. She was seventeen! Normal teenagers would have their whole lives ahead of them. Suddenly, she began to do something she thought she never would: pray.  
  
'God, please watch over my parents, Giles, and Willow and Xander. Keep them safe, and protect the next slayer to come after me. She's going to need it...'  
  
Her eyes were closed so tightly that she never noticed the plan Angelus was concocting in front of her. Just as Spike was about to bite into her neck, he called out, "Spike, maybe I do care."  
  
Buffy's eyes flew open at this. What?  
  
"What?" Xander asked, astounded as he looked at Willow. She returned his glance with a timid one of her own. How should she know anything about vampire emotions?  
  
"But you do, too." And with a fluid motion of his arms, Angelus had Drusilla in front of him and the dagger at her throat.  
  
Spike let out a deep throated growl. Angelus knew Drusilla was his weak spot. He wouldn't let anything happen to her now that she was fully restored. He would die for her.  
  
'Okay, what happens now?' Xander wondered, watching intently... 


	7. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5  
  
"Don't have you with me  
But I keep a good attitude"  
-Elliot Smith, "Miss Misery"  
  
"Well, this is an interesting situation, isn't it?" Angelus asked, grinning. His left arm was wrapped around both of Drusilla's with the right holding the dagger within an inch of her pale throat. "What to do? What to do?" he mused, pretending to think it over in his head. "It's up to you, Spikie. Let Buffy go or say 'Bye-bye' to Dru."  
  
Spike watched as Dru wriggled around, trying to get out of her sire's grasp. The older vampire was stronger though, and he seemed serious.  
  
Buffy saw this as her chance to escape - a slight bit of hope still remained in her despite her earlier surrender - but Spike held on to her and pulled her tight against his chest. He wasn't going to give up without a fight.  
  
"You're serious?" he asked, laughing. To kill his own 'daughter' for the slayer's life? He must be crazy.  
  
"Deadly," Angelus replied, his voice unnaturally calm. He didn't want to kill Drusilla - She was family - but if that was the only thing to make Spike back off, then so be it.  
  
"If I let the slayer go, you'll let go of Dru?"  
  
Angelus nodded. "Of course."  
  
"Then what happens? You'll let the slayer go and we can all go back home pretending like it never happened? No, sorry, Angel. Can't do that. If she goes free, you can never come back. Are you prepared to give up your home for this... human?"  
  
"I won't have to," said Angelus through clenched teeth. He really didn't like these games Spike was playing. Too much talk and not nearly enough action...  
  
'Let's just get it over with,' he thought to himself, tightening his hold on his prisoner.  
  
"Oh, so you just think she's going to surrender to you, give up her life and become one of us for this twisted obsession you call love?" Spike snickered, causing a look of daggers to shoot out from Angelus' eyes.  
  
At the end of this, he might actually not want to go back to living with Drusilla and her paramour. The two of them were really starting to get on his nerves. Drusilla was afraid of everything when she wasn't in charge, and Spike? Well, he was just plain annoying. Hopefully, besides starting over by himself, that wouldn't be his only choice...  
  
The look in Angelus' eyes was answer enough. "You do." Spike laughed again, letting one arm encompass Buffy's throat completely while leaving the other one free. She gasped for breath, struggling against his hold, as he continued.  
  
"Hey, man, I'm all for it. Just let me do it, okay? All those months in that chair... When I really needed it, I mean... You owe me."  
  
Angel disagreed. "I don't owe you anything."  
  
"Oh, yes, you do," Spike told him in all seriousness. "You owe me and Dru for every damn time you, the slayer, or any of her little friends tried to kill us or anyone else of our kind. You owe every single one of them and their memories an apology. Letting me change her is only the beginning."  
  
Buffy relaxed a little as he moved his arm from around her neck to restraining her flailing arms. She was able to breathe again, and that did help her more than a little bit when it came time to think. That wasn't exactly a good idea though because it showed her she was in even more trouble than she thought.  
  
"Oh, you'll be a cute one," Spike told her, caressing her cheek with his thumb. "Any momentos you'd like to keep, Angelus?" He knew that a vampire's first loyalty was to her sire, and he was going to enjoy having the girl to boss around. Once Spike turned her, he doubted her love for Angel would still remain.  
  
"Ooh, here's a nice one." Spotting the silver Claddagh ring on Buffy's left ring finger, Spike called to one of the other vamps with him. "Give this to Angel," he instructed, sliding the ring of her finger and giving it to the vamp. He had seen a similar ring on Angelus' hand and thought it fitting it be returned to the one who probably gave it to her.  
  
Nodding, the vampire traversed the small distance between the 'father' and his 'son' and handed it to Angel, who, still keeping his hold on Drusilla, gripped the ring between his thumb and one of his forefingers, studying it intently. The demon may have controlled his body, but he still had Angel's memory embedded into his mind, including all his feelings for Buffy.  
  
"Oh, God, he's going to kill her," Xander said quietly.  
  
"I don't think so," Willow told him, shaking her head slightly. "Look."  
  
Following her request, Xander quickly scanned the group in front of him. He didn't notice anything at first, but then he did. While arguing with Spike, Angelus had changed into his 'game face,' but now, as he looked over the ring in his hand, his face had changed into its human form and he had a look of sincere emotion. But what did that mean? Was Angel just hidden inside Angelus?  
  
"I'm going to enjoy this," Spike said to his victim, grinning sadistically. Brushing the hair away from her bare neck, he bared his fangs and...  
  
A meek whimper could be heard and then a quiet explosion, causing Spike to look up before he even had a chance to bite her. Across from him stood Angelus, twirling the dagger in his hand.  
  
"I told you I don't owe you anything." 


	8. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6  
  
"Pitchin' and reachin'  
And climibing and fallin'"  
-Scott Weiland, "Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down"  
  
Spike's yellow eyes glowed in anger. Angelus had killed Drusilla! He really wasn't bluffing...  
  
Shoving the slayer away from him, Spike lunged at Angelus. Landing on her knees onto the ground, Buffy stood and brushed herself off, taking in the scene around her. Spike was waging a full-blown attack on Angelus, and the four other vamps stood guard over Willow and Xander, not quite sure what to do.  
  
Two advanced on her while the others watched their captives for any chance of escape. Spike's orders were not to be disobeyed. He wanted the slayer eliminated.  
  
"Just when I thought this night couldn't get any worse," she mumbled, preparing for their attack.   
  
The two didn't put up much of a fight as she staked them very quickly and turned to the remaining pair. After watching what she had done to their comrades so effortlessly, they hurriedly let go of their captives and ran away.  
  
"Chickens," she remarked under her breath. "Are you guys okay?"  
  
"We're fine. I think," Willow answered, scratching her head. She had never been so scared in her life.  
  
"Yeah," agreed Xander. "It's not every day we get to watch father-son wrestling. Kinda like 'Jerry Springer,' only there aren't any enormous security guards jumping in to break it up. Let's get out of here before I have a heart attack, okay? I've had about all the excitement I can stand for one night."  
  
Willow nodded and Buffy did the same. It had just begun raining, and she didn't think it was a good idea they stay outside. Coming together, the group began to walk off and back to their homes. However, Buffy seemed to be lagging behind, peering over her shoulder at the still ongoing fight between Spike and Angelus. They seemed to be tied as the battle raged on.  
  
"Buff? Earth to Buffy?"  
  
"Huh?" she asked, turning around with a confused expression.  
  
Xander looked at his friend, concerned. "You coming?"  
  
"No, you guys go on without me. I have to take care of something."  
  
"You're sure? I don't think you should be getting messed up in that. Leave it up to them to solve their own problems."  
  
"Xander," Willow interrupted.  
  
"Okay. I'll shut up. Just be careful, alright?"  
  
Nodding, Buffy promised to call them and watched as the duo walked away. She felt horrible about dragging them into this mess. It was her responsibility to keep them out of danger, not put them in it. It was a good thing Spike seemed the most interested in her than anyone else.  
  
Checking over the small distance between herself and the vampires, she saw Angelus deliver a sharp blow to Spike's nose. A faint trail of blood trickled out of it. She would have worried about cosmetic appearances, but they were vampires so what did it matter? Their faces were screwed up no matter what you did.  
  
Spike countered him with a nice punch and then kick to the head. Angelus was knocked off balance and pushed onto the ground.  
  
'Ouch.' Buffy winced sympathetically. 'That's gotta hurt.'  
  
As Angelus stumbled to get up, Spike spotted the dagger lying on the ground near him and bent over to retrieve it. Angelus staggered to meet his attacker, not knowing what he was doing, and Buffy called out, "Angel!" to warn him.  
  
But it was too late. Angelus' head snapped around at the sound of her voice, and Spike found his opportunity to injure the vampire and used the dagger to slash him across the right side of his ribcage. Putting a hand over the wound, Angelus doubled over in pain. This was the second time he'd been stabbed trying to save the slayer. It was too much.  
  
"Who's in control now, huh?" Spike taunted him, waving the miniature sword in front of his face. "You are a disgrace to your family, Angelus. It's time you paid for it." 


	9. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7  
  
"But it's alright  
When you're caught in pain  
And you feel the rain come down"  
-Chris Cornell, "Sunshower"  
  
A kick to the face sent Spike falling to the ground, the dagger flying out of his hand and onto the dark pavement. When he was able to stand, he saw Buffy in fighting stance above him.  
  
"You do anything to hurt him, Spike, and I swear I'll kill you," she promised him. "Only this time it'll be for good. I mean it."  
  
"Ooh, I'm scared," he told her sarcastically. "The little lady's a killer. Try using that logic on your boyfriend. It would save both of us a lot of trouble."  
  
Crossing her arms over her chest defiantly, Buffy shook her head. "Get out of here."  
  
"With pleasure," Spike said, gesturing with his arm as if to bow. "I'll be seeing you, love. Like I said, think about it before you go defending Angel. He isn't worth the effort."  
  
"Worry about yourself, Spike. Leave me alone."  
  
He shrugged, pretending to be hurt. "Don't say I didn't warn you." Buffy watched carefully as he stepped over to Angel, crouched down on the ground. "Stay away, and don't ever come back. If you do, you'll wish you'd never been born." And then, with a sweep of black leather, he disappeared into the night.  
  
"You okay?" Buffy asked, reaching over to help Angelus up.  
  
Wincing in pain, he shoved her away from him and stood on his own, declaring, "I don't need your help. I was fine until you butted in. Just leave me alone." Then, he too was gone.  
  
"Fine, don't thank me," she muttered, turning around and starting back home. Something on the ground caught her attention though, and she bent over to pick it up.  
  
Her Claddagh ring. Angelus must have dropped it during his fight with Spike. The way he acted when the vampire gave it to him proved it still meant something to him and so did she. She just wasn't sure what.  
  
Thunder rumbled and lightning lit up the sky, causing her to snap out of her reverie. Shoving the ring into her pocket, Buffy ran over the slippery pavement and headed back home... 


	10. Chapter 8

*The song used is Sarah McLachlan's "Witness" off the album Surfacing.*  
  
CHAPTER 8  
  
"You're in the fire in my belly  
The fucked-up way I'm feeling"  
-Lauren Christy, "Walk This Earth Alone"  
  
Cordelia Chase opened the door to her house and nodded for the people standing outside to come in. It was still raining out, and she didn't want to be responsible for anyone catching a cold.  
  
Following her up to her room, Willow and Xander stepped in, and she shut the door behind them. It was one of the rare times her parents were actually home, and she didn't want any disturbances. They had called her from a pay phone somewhere and after filling her in on their current situation, asked if she could salvage what was left of Willow's hair. Always eager to help anyone during a fashion crisis, she had immediately agreed.  
  
When Buffy first came to Sunnydale High, Cordelia had been nice to her and gave her the 411 on the small town. However, when Buffy's began hanging around with Willow and Xander, she quickly broke off ties with her unless they had to be together. After Buffy saved her from an invisible girl named Marci and being attacked by vampires on school grounds, she and the rest of the group became good friends. She and Xander even started dating.  
  
"Can you fix it?" Willow wondered, putting her hands up to her hair self-consciously.  
  
"Of course I can," Cordelia said, leading the girl into the bathroom...  
  
Half an hour later, after a quick shampoo and cut as well as styling, Cordelia finally let Willow look in the mirror. She thought she had done a pretty good job.  
  
"Good as new," she declared, putting her styling tools away.  
  
Willow swung her auburn locks around in front of the three-way mirror. She wasn't sure if she liked it or not. The cut took away a lot of her hair, but she did have a great abundance of it seeing as she hadn't cut it in over a year besides a few trimmings. This new hairstyle was a definite change for her.  
  
"Xander, you can come in now!" Cordelia called, opening the bathroom door.  
  
She had stuck him in there ever since washing Willow's hair because she was so self-conscious about it. Now it was time to get a guy's opinion.  
  
"What do you think?" asked Willow nervously.  
  
Xander was her best friend. If anyone would tell her the truth, it would be him.  
  
"Wow..."  
  
"'Wow' what?"  
  
"You look great."  
  
Her hair now rested only a couple inches below her shoulders but it still had the same, simple style to it. A natural 'do. The shorter cut didn't take away from her pretty hair, but it accentuated her beautiful face, too.  
  
"Really?" Willow smiled.  
  
"Really. It's like in that movie 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' when the killer cut off Sarah Michelle Gellar's hair, but then she ended up looking even better after."  
  
At this, Willow's smile widened. Xander had a habit of comparing everything to TV, movies, and books, but the compliment was still nice.  
  
"If you don't believe me, ask Cordy."  
  
"See, I told you," Cordelia declared, crossing her arms over her chest triumphantly...  
  
***  
  
Buffy walked into her room, wearing her pajamas and drying her hair with a towel. She told her mother she was caught in the rain at the Bronze as she was leaving and hurried home. The explanation was true enough, and her mother believed it as she had all the ones before. Someday, maybe Buffy wouldn't have to lie to her mother about where she'd been, but she doubted it.  
  
Make me a witness, take me out  
Out of darkness, out of doubt  
I won't weigh you down with good intention  
Won't make fire out of clay or other inventions  
  
Sitting down on her bed, she dropped the towel on the nightstand beside her and climbed under the covers. She was exhausted. Being the slayer had to be the most frustrating and tiring job in the world. Even Clark Kent didn't have to worry about his mother. And he could drive, too, along with all those other superpowers. The only things Buffy had were her mind and superhuman strength, although Giles and the Slayerettes did try and help her with everything else.  
  
Will we burn in heaven  
Like we do down here?   
Will the change come while we're waiting?   
Everyone is waiting  
  
Switching off her light, she lay down and shut her eyes, trying to sleep. She quickly found she couldn't as images kept flooding back into her mind. Angel, Angelus, and the way he came to her rescue. Her Angel was still in there somewhere. She knew he was. They just weren't looking in the right places...  
  
And when we're done soul searching  
And we carried the weight and died for the cause  
Is misery made beautiful right before our eyes?   
Will mercy be revealed, or blind us where we stand?   
  
Outside the confines of the Summers home, Angelus sat up in his tree again, watching the inside of Buffy's room. After a while of tossing and turning, she had managed to fall asleep. His stomach was bandaged over and it hurt like hell, but he had to come and check on her. He knew Spike would come after the both of them now that Drusilla was gone and he had no one to answer to. He was going to have to protect her as best he could until another solution was found...  
  
Will we burn in heaven  
Like we do down here?   
Will a change come while we're waiting?   
Everyone is waiting  
  
Meanwhile, in the late Ms. Jenny Calendar's room at Sunnydale High School, a yellow computer disk rested between the teacher's desk and a file cabinet. Unbeknownest to anyone, the unlabeled object was the key to fulfilling both Buffy and Angel's dreams. Someone just had to find it...  
  
Will we burn in heaven  
Like we do down here?   
Will a change come while we're waiting?   
Everyone is waiting... 


End file.
